Sen. Frank Murkowski (R-AK) announced Friday he is putting offintroducing the Senate Republicans’ widely anticipatedcomprehensive energy legislation until the week of Feb. 26, at theearliest.

After meeting with Vice President Richard Cheney last week,Murkowski said Senate Republicans would unveil their energy packagethis Tuesday, but he later pushed back the date to give the JointSenate-House Committee on Taxation time to score the impact of thebill’s proposed tax initiatives on the U.S. Treasury.

Murkowski, chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural ResourcesCommittee, also said he wanted more time to talk over thelegislation with House members Billy Tauzin (R-LA), chairman of theHouse Energy and Commerce Committee, and Joe Barton (R-TX),chairman of the House Energy and Air Quality Subcommittee.

Murkowski was one of several lawmakers in the Senate and Housethat met with Cheney on Capitol Hill last Tuesday. Cheney is headof a White House task force in charge of developing a nationalenergy policy.

The centerpiece and most controversial element of the SenateRepublicans’ legislation is expected to be a provision to open theArctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) to oil and gas drilling.Asked if ANWR still was in the energy measure, a Senater Energycommittee spokeswoman quipped, “That goes without even asking.”

Senate Democrats, led by Sen. Jeff Bingaman (D-NM), are likelyto mount a vociferous attack against any legislation that includesANWR.

Cheney conferred with a number of other lawmakers, includingSenate Finance Committee Chairman Charles Grassley (R-IA), HouseMajority Whip Tom Delay (R-TX) and Barton. Barton’s subcommitteewould have oversight over any energy bill in the House.

Capitol Hill aides and energy industry representatives viewedthe meetings as an encouraging sign. They said they signaled thatthe White House is serious about energy. In fact, the Bushadministration is expected to send its own energy legislation toCongress within the next six to eight weeks.

Susan Parker

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